Intrepid served in 3 wars,
WWII, Korea, and
Vietnam. She survived seven bomb attacks, five kamikaze crashes, and
a torpedo hit. During the 1960's, the Intrepid served as the primary
recovery ship for the Mercury and Gemini space flights. After being
decommissioned, she toured the US during the 1976 Bicentennial
celebration. While the US Navy planned to scrap the Intrepid, a
group of New Yorkers campaigned and raised money to save the ship,
which is now billed as the largest sea, air, and space museum in
the world.

The Museum:

Intrepid is tied up at Pier 86
in the Hudson
River on the west side of Manhattan Island. That is roughly at the west
end of 42nd street. It is easy walking from the subway station, or take
a cab from anywhere in the city. There is no parking. The museum is busy,
so plan a mid-week visit to avoid the crowds.

The bulk of the displays are on the hangar deck, which is packed full
of interesting stuff. A majority of the ever growing aircraft collection
is on the flight deck. While the Navy planes are built for the salt air
environment found near the sea, the A-12 Blackbird is not, and the plane
is rapidly deteriorating.

In addition to the flight and hangar decks, the island is open for tours,
as well as some of the rooms that are just under the flight deck but
above the hangar decks. Nothing below the hangar deck is open, such
as the main crew areas or engine rooms. When the Intrepid was brought
in, it was grounded, and water has entered some of the lowest levels
of the ships, so it is unlikely that the below the hangar deck areas
will ever be available for tours.

In addition to the Intrepid, the museum includes a Submarine missile
carrier and a retired Concorde supersonic jet airliner.